Copper coil expired

[voxnihili]

My copper coil expired in November and I’ve been trying to book an appointment to have it replaced. The trouble is that I can’t find any appointments that fall within the school holidays (teacher and won’t be allowed time off). There’s been nothing this holiday and can’t yet book for February half term (they can’t even tell me if they’ll be running the clinic that week yet).

I’ve been googling to find out if there’s a risk to leaving it in too long and can see there’s an infection risk and it won’t be effective against pregnancy but can’t find any actual statistics. Anyone know if it will be ok to wait until the summer - if I can’t get it sorted by then I’ll have to go private. The places I have looked at though are approx £600.

They can be inserted as emergency contraception. Could you go to a sexual health clinic and say you've had what you assume is unprotected sex as you think your current coil has expired.

How old were you when it was fitted and for how long has it been in?

If you can afford it, get it taken out. I got PID from mine not being taken out in time because I couldn't get an appointment. I've never in all my life been in such excruciating pain (100x worse than childbirth), I was hallucinating from fever, I had to spend a long time in hospital and even longer recovering, and I could have easily gone into sepsis from it.

I thought it wouldn't happen to me and that I was ok to wait. If I could go back, I'd have even yanked it out myself to avoid that.

Please be extremely wary of any back pain in meantime. I thought I'd wrenched my neck to begin with. That was the first symptom.

Of course you can get the hour or so off for a medical procedure! Don't be ridiculous.
Tell your employer you have an appt on x date and time and will be in late. If your school physically stops you attending consult Union 🤷‍♀️

@thehonscupboard I hadn’t thought of saying I needed emergency contraception. I did look for a local walk in and none of the local places are offering a walk in service any more (still citing Covid).

@yikesanotherbooboo I was 34 when I had it put in and have had it just over 5 years.

@WolvesDiscoandBoogaloo sorry to hear you went through that. I will definitely keep an eye on any back pain and will seriously consider going private.

@doubleshift I wish I was being ridiculous but in my school time off for such an appointment wouldn’t be granted. That’s what the holidays are for. I agree it’s ridiculous but I don’t make the rules. Getting the union involved is frowned upon and wouldn’t end well for me. I’d pay private before rocking the boat - just wondering how long I can leave it waiting for an appropriate NHS appointment.

Most copper coils last 10 years and if you have it inserted after the age of 40 it can stay in until the menopause . I would check the make; if it is a five year one, use condoms as well and book in for coil change but don't worry unduly about it having been in for a few extra months. Obviously if you get worrying pelvic symptoms contact your GP urgently.

The leaflet from mine says to have it changed November 2022. I wish I’d got a 10 year one. I read that earlier about being 40 when having it done - I might try and wait a few weeks until after my birthday so I don’t have to try and get it changed again!

Can you not have ppa at home and go in your ppa time?!

I'm a teacher, started at my new school in sept and have been hospitalised after 2 weeks and then needed surgery just because Xmas. I've already got follow up dates in the diary of when I'll need cover.

Have you actually approached your SLT? Can you not get an appointment at 3:30/4pm so there's no impact on teaching?

What about staff who have maternity appts? Or appts that are given and cannot easily be rearranged for the hols?

Unfortunately NHS surgeries are unable to arrange their coil clinics around teachers (or any other profession).

In fact our surgery is much less likely to operate a coil clinic during school holidays as the GPs who are trained to fit them also have school age children & tend not to be in work.

Having said that you may find your local sexual health clinic has more flexibility.

Maternity appointments and those set by a hospital are granted (although people are usually asked to rearrange them for first thing or last thing so the impact is minimised). A 4pm appointment would have been ok but they don’t do them that late.

@HollyFern1110 it wasn’t a dig at the NHS - I appreciate that they can’t run their clinics around my work schedule. I can’t take time off work so I started looking at private options. Just wondered whether I needed to get it done immediately or whether it would be ok to wait a bit and see if a clinic (including sexual health clinics) coincided with a school holiday.

Teacher or not, you are allowed (of course) allowed to go to essential healthcare appointments that are not possible to be scheduled outside of your working hours. This clearly isn't, so book it as far ahead as possible, with the timing to minimise how much cover will be needed, tell your employer, and go to it.

I'm sick of women's healthcare needs being shoved to one side by all and sundry - third one I've seen this afternoon on here - we need to collectively push back.

This is the perfect post for my question! Sorry to jump on. What is it that expires with a copper coil? There's no hormones in it and surely it's basically a barrier method? I'm the same, can't get a clinic appointment for 4 months and not keen on condoms.

No idea what expires. I did manage to get mine changed as my wonderful doctor’s surgery had written down when February half term was and when they confirmed that they would be running the clinic they just booked me in and sent me a text. I would have got it done privately if I couldn’t have got an appointment.